Bodies of Swiss couple found after 75 years in a melting glacier

Bodies of Swiss couple found after 75 years in a melting glacier

The bodies of a couple who went mission 75 years ago were discovered in the Swiss Alps after a glacier in the mountain range started melting. This discovery also put an end to decades of pursuit of their children to give their parents a respectable funeral.

Marcelin and Francine Dumoulin had gone over to a meadow near their house to milk their cows in the Valais canton on August 15, 1942. They never returned home. The bodies were found last week by a staffer of Les Diablerets resort near a ski lift. The worker had gone to an altitude of 2615 meters (8600 feet) for a routine maintenance job, according to the Valais cantonal police. They also said that the two bodies had identifying documents on them.

The bodies were found perfectly preserved, wearing clothes dating back to the World War II era. Their belongings, which included backpacks, watches, mess kits, a glass bottle and boots, that were lying close by were also intact. Though the identities are established by the papers and belongings, DNA tests would be done for confirmation.

The youngest of their seven kids, Marcelin Udry-Dumoulin said that the news of her parents’ bodies being found brought her a deep sense of calm. “We spent our whole lives looking for them, without stopping. We thought that we could give them the funeral they deserved one day. For the funeral, I won’t wear black. I think that white would be more appropriate. It represents hope, which I never lost,” said Marceline, now 79 years old.